Offers opposing views of the merit of EQuality project, a high school reform movement designed to improve students' performance through curriculum changes. (JL)

The word "curriculum" is derived from a verb meaning "to run a course," which well describes the frantic actions of educators to adopt each new educational fad. But the curriculum revisions of recent years have not justified their cost. It is time for educators to be more conservative. (Author/SJL)

This book addresses issues relevant to the development of a coherent curriculum. A "coherent" curriculum is one whose parts are unified and connected by a sense of the whole. Following the foreword by Arthur W. Steller and the prologue by James A. Beane, the introduction (1) by James A. Beane raises a number of questions related to the search for…

Addresses important considerations for the implementation of speaking across the curriculum. Highlights important distinctions between speech courses and speaking-across-the-curriculum courses taught by faculty in other disciplines. Argues that the benefits of speaking across the curriculum outweigh the potential harm to the field if concerns are…

Alternative approaches to education can work well if they are based on common sense and sound research. Recent research findings are reported for alternative approaches to three areas: curriculum, testing and measurement, and instruction. (TE)

Self-determined change on the part of teachers and the administrative policies supporting such educational innovations are outlined and discussed. Chief among the policies are encouragement of innovation, cooperation, and a willingness to negotiate content and process. (JMF)

Over 75 years ago, a British report on education commented on the confusion of aims in English language teaching, citing the quality of teaching, unsuitable textbooks, and lack of a coherent sense of purpose. Experience has shown that undergraduate linguistics has not come far since then. In the experimental, interdisciplinary program at the State…

The Specials Projects (Innovations) Program of the Commonwealth Schools Commission in Australia was established to improve primary and secondary education by encouraging innovation and diversity in teaching through grants to individuals, usually teachers. This study focuses on the professional development of the teachers involved. Forty-five…

Part 1 of this paper discusses contributions made by diverse schools of thought in the philosophy of education to the development of a relevant social studies curriculum. The relevance of major philosophical approaches to teaching and learning is considered in light of the approaches' influences on instructors' teaching styles and students'…

Describes the Sociological Resources for the Social Studies (SRSS) materials developed during the "New Social Studies" period in the 1960s and 1970s. Concludes that the limited success of the program was a result of not including school administrators in dissemination efforts. (CFR)

Based on the premise that deficiencies in student learning are inherent byproducts of the traditional school structure, this study compares the effects of an experimental curriculum program on student learning with its traditional structural counterpart. The traditional school structure is characterized by a heavy teacher workload, segmented…

Two secondary out-of-school activities were evaluated to determine how well each met rigorous definitions of curriculum. It was found that the activities--a whitewater canoe trip and a series of 3 10-day expeditions to a boreal forest, a subarctic area, and a mountain setting--both met the criteria for curriculum including intent of the teacher to…